'They will not qualify for playoffs' - R Ashwin makes bold claim while picking KKR's XI for IPL 2026

Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has named his probable playing XI for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The three-time champions will be wanting to bounce back from a disappointing season last time around where they finished eighth. 

Ashwin’s KKR team is pretty straightforward. The former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) star included all usual suspects in the team like new signings Finn Allen, Cameron Green and Blessing Muzarabani. 

The former player-turned-expert opted to go with captain Ajinkya Rahane as the opener alongside Allen. This means that the other Kiwi opening batter in the form of Tim Seifert missed out to accommodate other overseas stars. Ashwin, however, predicted Green to have a great season with the bat.

"For the best batter, I am going with Cameron Green, because I am thinking of Ajinkya Rahane and Rinku Singh as well, but I don't know where KKR will use them. I would have picked Rahane if he was at the top of his game, at the prime of his career. Somehow, I have a feeling that Cameron Green might do well, if he is used in the top four," R Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

Ashwin also backed Sunil Narine to continue with his excellent form for the Kolkata-based outfit. The former India player, however, believes that KKR's bowling is their weak spot heading into the 2026 IPL which could prevent them from qualifying for the playoffs. 

"For the best bowler, I am going with Sunil Narine. I think he will continue to be economical, and he will be the four-over bank. I have no doubts about that. KKR will not qualify for the top four this time. Their bowling seems strange. In the IPL, if you don't have a good top order, you can compensate with the middle order, and if you don't have a good middle order, you can compensate with the top three. But if you lack bowling, it is very difficult to make up," he added.

R Ashwin’s Predicted Kolkata Knight Riders Playing XI: 

Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane, Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy, Blessing Muzarabani